Current Progresses of Functional Nanomaterials for Imaging Diagnosis and Treatment of Melanoma

Melanoma is a malignant skin tumor that results in poor disease prognosis due to unsuccessful treatment options. During the early stages of tumor progression, surgery is the primary approach that assures a good outcome. However, in the presence of metastasis, melanoma hasbecome almost immedicable, since the tumors can not be removed and the disease recurs easily in a short period of time. However, in recent years, the combination of nanomedicine and chemotherapeutic drugs has offered promising solutions to the treatment of late-stage melanoma. Extensive studies have demonstrated that nanomaterials and their advanced applications can improve the efficacy of traditional chemotherapeutic drugs in order to overcome the disadvantages, such as drug resistance, low drug delivery rate and reduced targeting to the tumor tissue. In the present review, we summarized the latest progress in imaging diagnosis and treatment of melanoma using functional nanomaterials, including polymers, liposomes, metal nanoparticles, magnetic nanoparticles and carbon-based nanoparticles. These nanoparticles are reported widely in melanoma chemotherapy, gene therapy, immunotherapy, photodynamic therapy, and hyperthermia.